An arsonist involved in extortion cases targeting South Asian homebuilders in Edmonton has been arrested from abroad.
Maninder Singh Dhaliwal was arrested in late 2024 in the United Arab Emirates on separate charges, Edmonton police announced Tuesday. It is mentioned in the statement that an application has been made to extradite Dhaliwal to Alberta.
Police have alleged that Dhaliwal is the leader of a criminal organization responsible for collection of donations. The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) investigated 40 related incidents, the last one – an arson – on July 26.
“This investigation has been a major effort on the part of EPS investigators, with unprecedented complexities involving international coordination,” Insp. Duane Hunter with the EPS Organized Crime Branch, said in a news release.
'We are very happy to see that it has been settled with the demand for Dhaliwal's extradition.
Dhaliwal's extradition could be complicated because there is no extradition treaty between Canada and the UAE. The absence of such a treaty means there is no agreement on how a person accused of a crime can be transferred from the UAE back to Canada to face trial.
A warrant was issued in July
Police had issued a Canada-wide warrant for Dhaliwal last July in connection with a series of vandalism of new or under-construction homes and extortion that have plagued the city's South Asian community.
This is the latest in an ongoing investigation known as Project Gaslight, an investigation into incidents targeting Edmonton business owners, allegedly carried out by a group of local people at India's direction.
Police allege that Dhaliwal, 34, is responsible for organizing the crimes from abroad – recruiting people in Edmonton and making threats when demands for money transfers are not met and paying to set fire to properties.
As of last July, when Dhaliwal's warrant was announced, Edmonton police were investigating 40 crimes related to the race, including arson, drive-by shootings and gun incidents.
The investigation so far has already led to many arrests.
Last summer, Dhaliwal and six others: four young men, a 17-year-old boy and a 20-year-old woman, believed to be involved in the scheme, were arrested and charged.
54 cases have been filed against them including charges of extortion, arson, deliberate throwing of weapons, vandalism, assault with weapons, crimes for criminal organizations.
Indictments against several suspects were also announced last January.
Arrested in action
Court documents recently obtained by the CBC detail one of the arsons that damaged two homes under construction in northeast Edmonton two years ago.
The suspects were caught in the act, two neighboring houses were set on fire.
According to the agreed statement of facts filed against the two indicted suspects, the arsons were captured on surveillance cameras.
The property owner, a local developer, was closely monitoring two of his construction sites through security cameras after receiving extortion threats. The properties were construction sites a few blocks from his home.
Just before 1:30 a.m. on Dec. 19, the owner was watching security cameras from his home when he saw an SUV pull up and see four people walking down the street.
The group split into pairs and headed to the construction sites armed with Jerry Can.
According to court documents, the house was doused with gasoline and set on fire. The four men got back into the SUV and drove off.
The owner, who had driven up and was some distance away, followed the SUV as it sped away. He called 911 and police began tracking the SUV as it moved through town.
The vehicle was eventually pulled over and all four were arrested. Melted jerry cans were recovered from the homes. Each took exactly $1,000 in damages but remained largely unscathed.
Attorneys for the five adults charged in July were in court Tuesday.
During Tuesday's hearing, prosecutor Breanna Smith described the file as “massive” and said the Crown's disclosure of evidence against co-accused to defense lawyers included 4,100 documents and 270 recordings.
The Crown is seeking a four-week preliminary hearing. The case has been submitted till February 4th.
